The Pentagon has spent months deploying the troops and weapons needed for the US to launch a military attack on Cuba. All it needs is final approval from Donald Trump, writes "Politico".
The president ordered the invasion of the island after economic and political pressure failed to topple the communist government. The accumulated naval presence in the region, the largest in the world outside the Middle East, would allow the US to act immediately.
These strategically placed assets set the stage for military action, from capturing Havana's leadership, similar to the capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, to a series of precision strikes. They open the door for the United States to get involved in the third international conflict of the Trump administration.
Cuba has big problems, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said. "Having a failed state 90 miles from our shores is a threat to the national security of the United States," he stressed.
The armada in the region is slightly smaller than it was in January, when the United States captured Nicolás Maduro. The USS Nimitz carrier strike group, consisting of several destroyers and a cruiser, entered the Caribbean in May. A number of drones and surveillance planes have also been circling Cuba for months. The amphibious assault ship and escort carrier USS Kearsarge, carrying 2,500 Marines, are off the coast of Virginia, preparing for a new deployment.
The troop surge provides a variety of military options, even as the Pentagon needs additional troops for a large-scale ground invasion. The USS Nimitz arrived in the region the same day the United States indicted former Cuban President Raul Castro.
The ship is likely there primarily for deterrence, although it could be used in a military operation if necessary, said Mark Cancian, a former Pentagon official. The ship, along with fighter jets based in Florida and Puerto Rico, would likely play a role in any military action in Cuba, he said. He said air strikes to destroy Cuba’s air defenses are possible. Raul Castro, he said, is a prime target.
But the Trump administration faces a deadline. Many of the largest warships deployed in the summer are approaching 10 months at sea, far beyond the usual six to seven months. That has defense officials worried about crew overwork and is adding to the strain on the navy, which is also conducting a blockade of Iranian ships in the Arabian Gulf.
The extended missions come after a record 11-month deployment by the aircraft carrier USS Gerald R. Ford, which ended this month after sailing from Europe to the Caribbean for operations in Venezuela and then to the Middle East for the war in Iran.